In 2020, Microsoft made a pledge to become carbon-negative for its power needs by 2030. Today, the company, in collaboration with Constellation Energy, announced a new agreement that would let Microsoft access power from the location of one of the most famous nuclear energy plants of all time: Three Mile Island.
In a press release, Constellation Energy revealed that it has signed a 20-year agreement with Microsoft to purchase and use energy powered by Three Mile Island Unit 1. This will allow the nuclear plant to power several of Microsoft's data centers with carbon-free energy.
Three Mile Island is located in Londonderry, Pennsylvania. In 1979, Three Mile Island Unit 2 experienced a partial meltdown, sending radioactive gases into the air. It remains the worst nuclear power accident in US history.
Three Mile Island Unit 2 has been shut down since the accident. However, Three Mile Island Unit 1 continued to produce energy until 2019, when its former owner shut it down due to losing money from the operation. In 2022, Constellation Energy acquired Three Mile Island Unit 1, leading up to today's announcement with Microsoft.
Constellation Energy plans to restore Three Mile Island Unit 1's systems in preparation for bringing the plant back online sometime in 2028. Once that happens, the planet will generate 835 megawatts of energy for Microsoft's data centers. The press release claims that the restart of the plant will also result in the addition of 3,400 direct and indirect jobs to the economy.
Bobby Hollis, the vice president of energy at Microsoft, is quoted as saying:
This agreement is a major milestone in Microsoft's efforts to help decarbonize the grid in support of our commitment to become carbon negative. Microsoft continues to collaborate with energy providers to develop carbon-free energy sources to help meet the grids' capacity and reliability needs.
The announcement did not reveal the financial terms between Microsoft and Constellation Energy.
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